Apple fights for consumer rights

By
10.06.2002 :: 10:52PM EST

Apple Computer is the Lone Ranger when it comes to fighting for consumers' rights, according to an article in The Mercury News. Intel, AMD, and Microsoft are all embracing enabling hardware that can restrict what consumers are able to do with music and movies that they purchase. This technology is called Digital Rights Management, or DRM, and it has been making waves for a while–and Hollywood and music industry execs are not all that happy that Apple isn't walking to their beat. Apple's digital hub strategy wants to allow users to control the digital media that they own outright, and use the files that are created in different ways on different devices and machines. How long can Apple hold the line on its own? I hope long enough for this battle to be over and the DRM issue to be decided on the side of the consumer. I know, I'm a little too optimistic. To keep abreast of developments threatening your rights, go to the Electronic Frontier Foundation's website or subscribe to the Electronic Frontier Foundation's e-mail newsletter. Thanks to Dave for the reader submission.

USER COMMENTS 13 comment(s)

what's next?(10:49am EST Mon Oct 07 2002)bit worrying isn't it. I mean, some gumpy fuck in a suit is telling the rest of the world they can and can't do and yet I bet his ginger children's life on the fact that he has copied music somewhere in his life, might be in his car, on mini-disk, on mp3, christ he may have even made a tape for a girl once (just so he could have his ginger kid!) and now they get all huffy and say it's wrong to copy stuff. Smells a bit doesn't it.

If, and it's only a fair question to ask, piracy was such a huge problem and they lose so much money through it, how much cash do they lose by taking artists on board like lady twinkle toes herself, Marriah (damn, I'm no good any more now the marketing machine has slowed down) Carey? And if they are so poor how do they pay Robbie Williams 80 million quid for 4 albums? The sums just don't add up. Perhaps if they didn't spend so much cash propping up sub standard cack with phenominal marketing budgets they may just have a few more pennies in the bank, then they could leave the public alone so that they can actually use the stuff the paid for in any way they want.

As Basil Faulty once said…

“OOooooooohhh, it makes me mad, Mad, MAD!!!!

Any apple bods listening? fight the good fight…

– by spacca

re: Spacca(12:15pm EST Mon Oct 07 2002)I must be out of the times, but what's this with calling every other thing “ginger?” – by Ziwiwiwiwiwiwiwiwiwi

AMD(12:19pm EST Mon Oct 07 2002)AMD does not integrate said hardware into their chips. They claim it is not needed and they do not want it on their chips. – by SteveB

Moot(12:52pm EST Mon Oct 07 2002)DRM is likely to be COA, Cracked on Arrival. So, it really comes down to polotics more than practicality. Or at least I wouldn't base a purchase decision on DRM. – by Clause

SteveB(2:54pm EST Mon Oct 07 2002)They don't now, but I thought they anounced the will be in the future. heck, Intel doesn't support this yet.

Either way, it will be cracked. I applaud Apple for not buying in to this crap. – by Etcetera

re: spacca(3:07pm EST Mon Oct 07 2002)What's gumpy? I asked my GF/SO and unofficial Britglish/Hinglish translator about it and she came up empty.

Did you really mean grumpy?

– by DeafDude

One meaning(4:02pm EST Mon Oct 07 2002)Gumpy=Lame Clueless, 'unable to see the forest throught he trees” etc. – by lexicon de nom

lexicon de nom(4:18am EST Tue Oct 08 2002)nice one man, I would have thought it was obvious to the genius's gathered on this string, sorry for not explaining it.

DeafDudewhere's your bird from? – by spacca

AMD aims to be DRM good guy(3:50pm EST Tue Oct 08 2002)

After some initial confusion on an Australian Web board caused by an AMD imposter, official AMD spokesperson Pat Moorehead has clarified that AMD's upcoming Opteron chips will not require DRM implementations on consumer PCs.

As reported here at Geek.com, AMD has also signed on to Microsoft's program, but will not require it to actually be implemented in the hardware. “There is nothing that could actually prevent a user running unlicensed content,” Moorehead stated.

Well, so its Apple and AMD vs. every one else.– by Warplex

good on them(7:12am EST Wed Oct 09 2002)more the merrier… – by spacca

Wake Up!(12:00pm EST Wed Oct 09 2002)Apple is not for your rights if this were true then we would all be able to put together an iMac without being restricted to what Apple wants to offer. Take a good hard look at what Apple actually represents, that is control. – by Switch To PC

Switch to a PC?(2:15pm EST Wed Oct 09 2002)“Apple is not for your rights if this were true then we would all be able to put together an iMac without being restricted to what Apple wants to offer.”

(I know I shouldn't feed the trolls, but just in case this person is sincerely this stupid…)

First off, Apple's a hardware company. They make their money from selling computers. They aren't Microsoft, and as much as some people like to equate the two companies, they aren't really in the same business.

Second, DRM represents a threat to widely accepted fair-use rights, such as recording content for time-shifting. What “right” do you imagine you have that would require a company to put its software on the hardware of your choosing? And if you really imagine that you have such a right, why aren't you bitching about Microsoft not writing a version of Windows for installation on Apple hardware?

You have the choice and the right not to purchase anything from Apple. Linux and Windows and all the assorted hardware they run on provide you with alternatives. If DRM gets widely implemented and required by law, you'll have no choice: you'll interact with content only as permitted by the publisher.

Pick your platform and enjoy it. But don't turn this into Apple-versus-Microsoft-versus-Linux. The issue is consumer rights versus DRM, and it's something that should unite consumers, regardless of OS or hardware.

The EFF, as mentioned in the article, is a good place to start.– by Us versus DRM